


What Goes Around

by LoriLee (cowgirl65)



Series: 'The River Monarch' AU [2]
Category: The Big Valley
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-21
Updated: 2010-01-21
Packaged: 2017-10-29 11:17:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/319305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cowgirl65/pseuds/LoriLee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>a follow up to my story "The True Measure of Wealth"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> “Give, and it shall be given to you… For whatever measure you deal out to others, it will be dealt to you in return.” Luke 6:38
> 
>  
> 
> I don't own 'The Big Valley' and make no money from this

October 29, 1877

 

“Jarrod, dammit, we’ve got to do something about this!”

Nick slammed the newspaper down on the desk in front of the lawyer, sending some other papers fluttering to the ground.

“Nick, have you ever heard of knocking?” Jarrod sighed, his train of thought broken by his brother’s disruptive entrance into his office.

Nick ignored him. “Have you seen the pack of lies Doolin’s printed this time?! How long are we going to let him get away with this?”

Jarrod leaned back and set down his pencil. Ever since the _River Monarch_ disaster, the editor of the _Stockton Eagle_ had delighted in using his editorial column to subtly denigrate the Barkley family. It seemed as if Peter Doolin wouldn’t rest in his futile effort to drive Tom Barkley’s family out of the valley in shame.

“Nick, haven’t you noticed every time Doolin prints one of those editorials, he loses a bit more credibility?” Jarrod questioned his volatile younger brother.

The mood in Stockton started to change since the devastating fire at the Stockton orphanage. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that the Barkleys were the primary benefactors after the fire, donating selflessly of their time and energy in the rebuilding and housing most of the children until the new dormitory was finished.

In fact, Doolin had been grasping at straws ever since the brothers risked their lives to extinguish the immense forest fire that had threatened not only outlying farms and ranches, but the town of Stockton itself. The editor of the _Eagle_ had tried to portray the act as selfish, that the Barkleys were only trying to protect their own interests, but the prevailing feeling of hostility in town had turned to one of shame for the way they’d treated the family which had long supported the area’s citizens, not the least of which was the sacrifice of Tom Barkley’s life in standing up to the railroad to save the land of many small farmers in the valley all those years ago.

Hands had again been extended in friendship and the Barkleys magnanimously accepted them, but not without the memory of how easily their ‘friends’ had turned on them. The past eight months had shown who their friends truly were and who just wanted to associate with the family’s perceived wealth and prestige. That hard-won lesson wasn’t going to be forgotten anytime soon.

“That doesn’t change the fact that he’s still doing it,” Nick growled, breaking Jarrod out of his reverie. “And it doesn’t change the fact that Doolin was the real thief, not our father.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Jarrod admitted. “But we still can’t prove it.” He took out his watch, checked the time and smiled wryly. “And since your interruption means I likely won’t get any more work done today, I’ll let you buy me a drink before we head home.”

“Now wait just a minute,” Nick protested with a grin of his own as Jarrod retrieved his hat and gunbelt, “I think the successful lawyer ought to be buying drinks for the hard working rancher here.”

Jarrod chuckled. “Oh, no, brother Nick, after crowing about the price you negotiated for that last crop of mustangs, I’m pretty sure the rancher is at least as successful as the lawyer right now.”

“Well, I reckon that is a fact, brother Jarrod,” Nick admitted with a laugh. “I reckon I can even treat you to the best Harry’s got.” He slung a companionable arm around Jarrod’s shoulders as the two brothers left the office, leaving the petty words of a petty man lying on the desk behind them.


	2. Chapter 2

“Jarrod, I need to talk to you.” Audra rushed down the stairs to confront her eldest brother as he and Nick arrived home late that afternoon.

“Hello to you too, Audra, my day was fine, thank you for asking,” Jarrod greeted, blue eyes laughing.

Audra smiled at Jarrod’s gentle chastisement for her less-than-polite greeting and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’m glad you’re home, big brother,” she told him, then dimpled at Nick as well. “How was your day, Nick?”

“Brightening considerably,” he said gallantly, taking her hand, “especially knowing I have the prettiest little sister in the valley.”

Audra snatched her hand away as he attempted to kiss it. “Oh, you!” she admonished him with a laugh before turning back to Jarrod. “Jarrod, I really do need to ask your help with something.”

“Ask away, honey,” Jarrod invited as he divested himself of gunbelt and hat.

“I was just over at Olga’s when her father was going through the mail. Jarrod, Mr. Doolin wants to double their rent!”

Even though she’d kept a stiff upper lip, Audra was the one most hurt by the virtual shunning of the Barkleys over the past several months. She was left off the guest lists of many of the parties and socials she so enjoyed, but steadfastly maintained she didn’t care, that she was content with her family and the true friends she had.

When invitations started to come her way again with the town’s turnaround in their attitude toward the Barkleys, Audra surprised her brothers by turning most of them down, preferring to spend her time with the friends who remained friends the whole time.

Olga Diedrich was one of those friends. Her family had emigrated from Germany a little over a year before and Audra helped Olga adjust to her new life in America. The Diedrichs remained friendly to the Barkleys even when more long-term friends turned their backs and Audra and Olga spent many afternoons together, riding, sewing and helping out at the orphanage.

“I’ll go talk to Jens in the morning,” Jarrod promised, “and see what I can do.”

Nick shook his head as he made his way into the parlour to pour himself a drink. “I’m telling you, Jarrod, that man has to be stopped,” he demanded, slamming the decanter back onto the table.

“And you figure we’re the ones to stop him,” Jarrod concluded. He knew his brother well enough to finish his thought for him.

“Damn straight, Pappy. ‘The truth no matter who it hurts’. Hell, I’ll show him hurt…” Nick realized his sister was still in the room as he spoke and had the grace to look embarrassed. “Sorry, Audra.”

“Don’t let Mother catch you talking like that,” Heath teased as he came in from the library. “She’s liable to wash your mouth out with soap. Not something I’d recommend, let me tell you.”

Nick cocked an eyebrow at his blond brother. “And just how would you know? You hardly ever cuss.”

“Nope,” Heath agreed, pouring his own shot of whiskey, “not since I did it in front of Mary Sue Parker in the second grade and Mama used Aunt Hannah’s lye soap to ‘clean the filth out of my mouth’, as she put it. Cured me but good.”

The siblings shared a chuckle at the face Heath made before taking a drink, as if to wash out the remembered taste of the soap.

“So, Nick,” Jarrod said, perching on the corner of the side table, “just how do you propose we stop Doolin?”

“I dunno, Pappy,” Nick told him, pacing over to the fireplace, “you’re the smart one, you should be able to think of something. Can’t we start by suing him for slander or something?”

Jarrod just shook his head. “Nick, I go over every editorial and every _Eagle_ story with a fine toothed comb. Doolin always stops just about six inches short of a libel suit. You’ll have to come up with something else.”

“What about the gold?” Audra piped up. “If we find it, maybe we can prove Father’s innocence at the same time.”

“Audra, we tried that six months ago,” Jarrod reminded her. “The gold’s well and truly buried, there isn’t a hope of getting it out of that mine.”

Audra frowned. “Well, there must be something,” she insisted.

Heath finished his drink. “I’m up for looking around the mine again,” he said, setting down his glass. “Something still doesn’t set right with me about that collapse. Anyone feel like taking a ride? Got over an hour until dinner.”

The other Barkleys looked at each other and moved as one toward the door.


	3. Chapter 3

Victoria wasn’t sure what to make of the mood around the dinner table that evening. No one seemed upset, no one mentioned any important news, but there was an undercurrent to the conversation that had her puzzled.

Then it hit her. The conversation swirled around Heath, but he wasn’t a part of it. There wasn’t any tension, his siblings weren’t ignoring him, or he them, but Victoria realized the only words her youngest son had spoken through the entire meal were the ones he used to greet her when he came to the table. Paying more attention, it was as if the rest of the family was giving him space and Heath did seem somewhat preoccupied, if not overly troubled.

“It shouldn’t have collapsed.”

All eyes went to Heath.

“There’s no reason for it,” the blond went on. “The timbers in the other shafts are solid, there weren’t any recent quakes, no water for flooding. That’s what was bothering me. That mine shaft should’ve stayed sound for years.” It was practically a speech for the soft-spoken cowboy and it made his brothers and sister forget about the meal in front of them entirely.

“But something made it collapse,” Nick insisted.

“If Heath says he can’t find a cause,” Jarrod reasoned, “maybe the shaft didn’t give way on its own. Maybe it had help.”

“An explosion?” Audra asked.

Her children’s expressions were so intense, Victoria wondered if they even remembered she was there. She still wasn’t exactly sure what incident they were talking about, she was sure she would have heard of any recent mine collapses even though the family didn’t have any mining interests any more, but she also didn’t want to interrupt whatever was going on.

“Only thing that makes sense, sis,” Heath conceded. “Reckon someone dynamited that shaft.”

Nick slammed his fist on the table, making the crystal shake. “It’s that snake, Doolin! He found out the gold was in the mine, took it, then destroyed all the evidence!”

It dawned on Victoria that they were talking about the mine collapse that caused the deaths of Jock McLean, Nick’s former commander and investigator for the government, and Cyrus DeLand, former employee of the Barkley shipping line, the collapse that presumably buried the gold from the _River Monarch_ for all eternity. That accident had almost ruined the family financially, but through tenacity and hard work, the Barkleys were holding their own. Victoria refrained from joining in the conversation, intrigued by the discussion going on around her.

Jarrod leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “Do you really think if Peter Doolin had one million in gold he’d still be in Stockton?” he queried his more impetuous brother.

“Well, maybe he’s lying low so no one suspects him.” Nick wasn’t about to be swayed from his conviction that the editor of the _Stockton Eagle_ was involved.

Heath toyed with the food on his plate, pushing it around as he thought. “What about Jock and Cyrus?” he finally asked. “Never found any bodies. Could be they’re involved.”

“Mr. DeLand wouldn’t do that to Melanie!” Audra insisted, appalled. “She was his daughter, he wouldn’t let her go on believing he was dead.”

“Maybe Melanie’s in on it,” Heath suggested.

“No way!” Nick protested, jabbing a finger at Heath. “You were at the funeral, you saw her, she believes he’s dead all right.”

“Just bringing it up for consideration, Nick,” Heath said evenly, not letting Nick’s belligerence ruffle him.

Jarrod leaned on his elbows with his fingers steepled in front of him. “I took Melanie’s statement about what her father told her about the gold and the Knights of the Golden Circle. I don’t believe she was hiding anything.”

“That only leaves Lt. McLean,” Heath pointed out with a look to Nick. Jarrod and Audra also looked to Nick, waiting for him to jump to the defense of his former commanding officer. But Nick just stared into his water glass.

“I don’t want to think it,” he said quietly. “I mean, the colonel and I saved each other’s lives more than once during the war. I don’t want to think he could do something like that.”

Jarrod pushed back from the table. “I think I’ll send out some inquiries,” he told them. “No one was looking for the gold to turn up when the investigation was going on, the government thought Father had it and we assumed it was buried under all that rubble. I’ll write out some telegrams and send them first thing in the morning.”

Nick stood as his older brother left the room. “Got a few ideas of my own. C’mon, Heath, let’s go grab a drink and I’ll run them past you.”

Audra put her napkin on the table. “You’re not leaving me out,” she called as she hurried after her brothers, leaving Victoria forgotten and alone at the table, but with a feeling of love and pride at the persistence of her offspring.


	4. Chapter 4

October 30, 1877

 

“And just what are you two up to, sneaking in so late?”

The two ranchers jumped at the voice coming from the kitchen door.

“Boy howdy, Jarrod, you nearly scared me out of half a year’s growth!” Heath protested.

The lawyer folded his arms, leaned back against the doorframe and looked at his brothers expectantly.

Nick gave his older brother a good-natured glare. “And who says we’re sneaking in anyway?” he asked as he removed his hat. “Can’t a couple fellas come back late after an evening in town?”

“Well, let’s reason this out,” Jarrod said, coming into the center of the room and eyeing them as if they were on the witness stand. “It’s Tuesday night and you’re in the middle of a roundup. Hardly a time when you’d be spending a late night in town.” He hooked his fingers in his belt and continued his observations. “Plus, you’re coming in through the back door when you usually enter through the front. And since when do you remove your boots before coming into the house?”

Jarrod reached out, plucked the boots from Heath’s hand and placed them on the table beside him, the pièce d’résistance of his argument. “In my considered opinion, all of this adds up to sneaking.” The lawyer leaned back on the edge of the table and waited, blue eyes gleaming with amusement.

Nick and Heath shared a glance, Heath looking slightly guilty and Nick’s expression warning him not to talk.

“We went into town and broke into Doolin’s office,” Heath finally confessed, not one to hide behind a lie, especially to family.

“Heath!” Nick protested loudly.

Jarrod chuckled. “I’d keep your voice down, brother Nick, unless you want Mother finding out what you’ve been up to as well.”

“Well, I’m not going to defend myself to you or Mother or anyone else,” Nick continued hotly, jabbing a finger at the lawyer’s chest.

Jarrod just raised an eyebrow and pushed the offending digit away. “I wasn’t about to lecture you. But you do know if you were caught, I would’ve had a devil of a time getting the two of you out of jail. I don’t think Doolin would be too forgiving.”

“We were careful, Jarrod,” Heath assured their eldest brother. “I made sure one of us was on lookout at the window. Would’ve had plenty of time to slip out the back if someone happened by.”

“And?” Jarrod’s word hung in the air between them. “What did you find?”

Nick shrugged, shaking his head. “Not much. Nothing to tie Doolin in to the gold.”

“Except that bill of sale.”

Both the dark haired Barkleys turned to face the blond.

“Bill of sale for what, Heath?” Jarrod wanted to know.

Heath pulled out a chair, sat at the table and leaned forward on his elbows. His brothers sat across from him and waited intently.

“A paper back east. The _Allegheny Herald_ in Pennsylvania. Looked to be a pretty big outfit as compared to the _Eagle_. Looked to be a pretty hefty price tag, too.” Heath pulled his black notebook out of his shirt pocket, found the page he was looking for and handed it over to Jarrod.

“Now why the devil didn’t you tell me this when we were in town?” Nick demanded, obviously irritated his partner in crime hadn’t divulged the information to him before now.

“Wasn’t sure if it meant anything.” Heath gave an apologetic grin. “Thought I’d run the numbers past Jarrod here before we jumped to conclusions.”

“Well, Pappy?” Nick’s patience was wearing thin.

“I don’t know, Nick,” Jarrod admitted. “I would say the purchase price of this paper in Allegheny is more than what the _Eagle_ is worth and as far as I know, the Stockton paper hasn’t been put up for sale. So either Doolin has come into some money we don’t know about…”

“Or he’s using government gold,” Nick finished gleefully.

“Don’t get your hopes up,” Jarrod warned. “Suspicion is a long way from proof.” He handed Heath back the notebook and the young cowboy tucked it back into its customary pocket. “But I do think a visit to the bank is in order tomorrow morning. Since we actually have a bank balance at the moment, Luther is willing to give me the time of day again. Maybe I can get a glimpse into Doolin’s finances.” He clapped Nick on the back and rose to his feet. “Well, I’m off to bed. See you in the morning, boys. And no more sneaking unless I get to be in on it too.”

His brothers’ laughter followed Jarrod up the stairs.


	5. Chapter 5

November 2, 1877

 

Retiring to the library after dinner, Heath racked up the balls and his brothers chose their pool cues while Silas readied coffee and dessert.

“So what’re the stakes, boys?” Nick wanted to know as he chalked his cue.

Jarrod and Heath looked at each other, Heath giving the lawyer a knowing grin as he said, “Since I reckon you already owe Jarrod here three dollars, and me at least five, figure we’ll just let you decide what you can afford to lose.”

“Oh, very funny,” Nick replied with a mock glare at his smiling brothers. “I’ll have you know I’m feeling pretty lucky tonight, so you boys better be ready to put your money where your mouth is.”

As the brothers haggled over what a win would be worth, Silas entered the library bearing a heavily laden tray. Nick stopped and sniffed appreciatively.

“Silas, what is that smell?”

Silas placed the tray on the coffee table. “Missus Diedrich brought it by as a thank you while you all were out this afternoon. Said she hoped you’d appreciate this token of her family’s appreciation.”

“Oh, it’s her apple strudel!” Audra exclaimed in delight.

Nick grabbed a bowl, sat himself on the arm of the settee and took a large spoonful. “I’ll appreciate something that tastes like this any day.”

Victoria graciously accepted a dish from Silas. “Thank you, Silas.” As everyone settled themselves around the room to enjoy the delicious dessert, Victoria turned to Jarrod. “I’m so glad we were able to help Jens and Frieda.”

Jarrod smiled around a mouthful of the delicious strudel. “Well, with the Arnolds deciding to move back east and leaving the farm on Snider’s Creek untenanted, it just made sense to offer it to the Diedrichs at a reasonable rent.”

“Wish I could’ve seen Doolin’s face when they told him they were moving,” Heath observed, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Bet his tenants leaving to live on a Barkley property didn’t win us any points.”

Nick shook his head, satisfaction obvious. “Well, it’s about time we took back from him. And doing it while giving a hand to someone else he’s trying to step on just makes it even sweeter.”

Victoria set her dish down contentedly. “Audra, make sure you thank Mrs. Diedrich for all of us when you pick up Olga to go to the orphanage tomorrow.”

“I will, Mother.”

The family settled back for a relaxing evening, Audra reading a book and Victoria finishing some needlepoint while the boys wrangled good-naturedly over the pool table.

“Dammit, Jarrod,” Nick finally burst out, causing Heath to miss his shot, “I just wish we could figure out where Doolin hid that gold!”

“If I lose this game, Nick,” Heath grumbled, “you’re the one who’s gonna owe Jarrod, not me.”

Victoria’s voice was stern. “Nicholas, what have I told you about using that kind of language in the house? But I take it from your outburst that you’re convinced the gold is in Peter Doolin’s possession?”

Jarrod sunk three balls in quick succession before missing the fourth. Leaning on his pool cue, he replied, “I’ve done some discreet checking and I can’t find any way he could have raised the money to buy that newspaper in Allegheny without first selling the _Eagle_. He hasn’t applied for a loan, I can’t find any investments paying out, no inheritance that anyone’s heard of, and I don’t think he’s the type to be modest if he came into money.”

Nick snorted. “I’m sure we’d be the first he’d tell so he could rub our noses in his good fortune.”

“And you think that just leaves the gold from the _River Monarch_ ,” Victoria concluded.

“The only problem is,” Jarrod added, “we can’t prove any of it. Without tangible evidence linking Doolin to the gold, it’s all just speculation.” He winced as Heath cleared the table of the remaining balls.

“Reckon I’m another dollar richer, big brother,” Heath grinned. “I’ll give you a chance to win it back later.”

“Only if I don’t win it from you first,” Nick challenged and racked the balls again.

“It’ll be fun watching you try, Nick,” Heath challenged back, blue eyes gleaming.

Audra had closed her book and was staring thoughtfully into the fire on the hearth. “Heath, weren’t you and Nick talking about searching his house or his office to see if the gold’s there?” she wondered.

Heath broke and moved to the other side of the table for his next shot. “Checked it out already,” he said without thinking as he sunk a ball in a corner pocket.

Victoria raised an eyebrow. “I see. And did you recently become a housebreaker or is that something from your past you should have told us long ago?”

Heath started and looked at his mother in alarm, grinning sheepishly when he saw the look of gentle teasing on her face. “No, ma’am,” he replied, with a slight emphasis on the hated ‘ma’am’, “reckon that’s something I picked up from Nick.”

“Hey!” Nick protested loudly to the amusement of his family. “I won’t stand here and be insulted.”

“You could go stand in the hall,” Audra suggested lightly. Nick shook his cue stick at her and then laughed himself.

“Well, it was my idea,” he admitted, “guess I deserved that.”

“But Sis is on the right track,” Heath stated, walking over to his blonde sibling after finally missing a shot. “If Doolin’s got the gold, he can’t have gotten it far. It had to weigh over half a ton. Nick, that shot ain’t gonna get any easier by you staring at it, y’know.”

Nick ignored him and banked the cue ball off the side, sinking the ball he was aiming for.

“Jarrod, has Doolin already paid for that paper he’s buying?” Heath asked suddenly.

Jarrod, who had just finished pouring another drink, turned to regard Heath thoughtfully. “As far as I can tell, no money’s changed hands yet. Why?”

Nick grumbled as his next shot missed and Heath moved around the table.

“Well, he’ll have to retrieve some of those bars if that’s what he’s using,” the blond cowboy stated, “and he’s gonna need a fence to cash them or somewhere to melt them down, since the gold’ll be stamped as government property.” He sunk three balls. “I expect if we keep a tail on him, he’ll lead us right to it.” Sending the last few balls spinning into their pockets, Heath straightened up and flashed a grin at his big brothers. “That’s the game, boys.” He waited expectantly. Jarrod handed over his dollar with a resigned smile and Heath turned to Nick.

“Pay up, big brother.”

Nick held up empty hands. “Didn’t get to the bank today,” he tried to rationalize. “But you know I’m good for it.”

Heath raised an eyebrow and looked to Jarrod. “Reckon I’ve heard that a time or two before. Jarrod, isn’t there some sort of penalty for not paying on a bet?”

“Oh, I believe we can come up with something, brother Heath,” the lawyer said with a glint in his blue eyes. “Maybe we can arrange some way for this miscreant to work off his debt.”

“Now wait just a minute…”

His protests fell on deaf ears as his brothers brainstormed ways in which they could be paid back and the house rang with the sound of laughter.


	6. Chapter 6

November 21, 1877

 

“Don’t see why I have to wear this blasted thing.”

Jarrod chuckled as Nick picked irritably at the black sling he wore and continued pouring drinks for himself and his brothers.

“I mean, it’s completely undignified,” Nick’s rant continued. “It’s not every day the Attorney General presents formal apologies of behalf of the government and here I am, the only one looking like an invalid.” He glared at the offending piece of fabric.

“That’s ‘cause you got shot and we didn’t, Nick,” Heath reminded the tall rancher.

“Maybe you could ask Mother really nicely and she’d let you take it off,” Jarrod suggested, smiling as he handed Nick a glass.

“At least it’s black, matches the rest of your outfit,” Heath added with a grin.

“You two are real funny,” Nick muttered as he took a drink. “Take that act on the road, why don’t you?”

His brothers snickered at Nick’s grumbling, but it was music to their ears. A few inches over and they knew the bullet would have silenced the loud cowboy permanently. Somehow, none of them thought of Peter Doolin as particularly dangerous. Cruel, yes. Underhanded, definitely. Shifty, without a doubt. But the idea that he could pose a physical threat never crossed their minds. Even the fleeting suspicion that he was behind Nick’s shooting in the alley that night almost nine months ago was just that, fleeting. But when Nick and Heath confronted the man as he was attempting to finalize the sale of the stolen gold to a well-known fence, he’d coldly and coolly upended the table containing the bars of precious metal, unbalancing the two cowboys long enough to pull his pistol and hit Nick in the shoulder. Heath was fast enough on the draw to put a slug in Doolin’s leg, effectively stopping his escape and giving Heath a chance to tend to his injured brother.

Jarrod and Sheriff Madden intercepted the fence as he ran, one Harlan Tucker. After recognizing the man met by Doolin just outside of town, the lawyer had ridden for his brothers to tail them, then to town to alert the law and it wasn’t long before the gold was retrieved and the malefactors behind bars.

“Thanks for the encouragement, brother Nick,” Jarrod grinned, “but I think I’ll stick to my day job.”

“Well, after getting Doolin to implicate Anson Gregory and his other accomplices in the original theft, I’m mighty glad you do, Pappy.”

Jarrod tried to look modest at the compliment. “It was all a matter of getting him to see the benefits of co-operation. I reminded him Mother and I are on the prison reform board and might be able to show him some leniency if his case ever comes up for parole.”

“State reform board,” Heath reminded with glint in his baby blues. “Isn’t the gold theft a federal offense?”

Jarrod’s sky blue eyes gleamed devilishly. “Why, brother Heath, I do believe I forgot to mention that little fact.”

The brothers clinked their glasses in triumph before draining them and looking to Jarrod for refills.

Victoria swept into the room, followed by Audra. Both women were dressed in their Sunday best and complemented the men, wearing their good suits with their boots shined to a glossy sheen.

“Look what we have here,” Nick gallantly proclaimed. “I don’t believe I’ve ever had the pleasure of beholding two finer looking ladies.”

“Why, thank you, Nicholas,” the elegant Barkley matriarch replied effusively. “Ciego is hitching up the buggy and saddling your horses so we can head into town to meet Mr. Devens. And Jarrod, a messenger just delivered this for you.” She handed her eldest son an envelope.

Jarrod opened the message and a broad smile came across his face as he perused its contents.

“Good news, Jarrod?” Audra asked.

“Very good, honey,” Jarrod confirmed. “A date has been set to review my petition to not only have the million dollars repaid, but for the government to pay punitive damages as well.” He refolded the paper and returned it to the envelope, tucking it into his jacket pocket. “I’ll start preparing my presentation right away.”

“But not until after Thanksgiving,” Victoria admonished him, taking her eldest son’s arm as he offered to escort her to the door. “Silas and I have a marvelous feast planned for tomorrow and you are all taking the entire day off. We have so much to be thankful for this year.”

The Barkley family left the house arm in arm, each one counting their blessings as they headed into the bright California sunshine of the valley they called home.


End file.
